Outstanding deeds and dishes put Brent Savage at the top of the food chain.

Brent Savage is no ordinary chef. No ordinary chef makes and toasts his own marshmallows to sell as a snack after dinner (or before, if that's you want). No ordinary chef makes a risotto from shredded potato or infuses warm milk with banana to make the most comforting of banana shakes and serves it with a honeycomb chocolate bar.

These extraordinary feats help to explain why Moog Wine + Food's Brent Savage is The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide's inaugural Chef of the Year.

The original Good Food Guide did not name the chefs in all the entries. But the rise in standards has allowed us to put the onus back on the person behind the stoves.

A good chef can define a restaurant. As a state, NSW has a wealth of talent; as editors of the Guide, we are lucky enough to sample the output of this talent.

The Restaurant of the Year is an eatery that is stellar as a package, with a wondrous chef at the helm. The Chef of the Year award is for the individual. We felt great chefs may not always be in flash restaurants that charge huge prices to pay for their expensive decor. They may be in humble digs, they may be brand new in town or they may be reinvigorated elders.

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Recognising the boundless energy of a head cook, the editors believe the Chef of the Year may hold the future in his or her hands. The award is an indication of a fresh approach, of vigour and of standout talent that does what chefs do best, excite us.

Savage is working at Moog Wine + Food with the extraordinarily strong team of Mark Best (from three-hatted restaurant Marque) and Nick Hildebrandt (also of Marque and winner of our Sommelier of the Year award). Moog is principally a wine bar (and one-room hotel) that serves food - and what food it is.

From the start, Savage learnt from the best. He trained in the Blue Mountains, finishing his apprenticeship with Phillip Searle at Vulcans. Then he came to Sydney and spent 3 1/2 years at Marque, which is now home to some of the nation's most deftly prepared food - it is world-class.

Savage rose to second chef before slipping off to Melbourne and finding a home at Mrs Jones, a dreamy Carlton bistro. Its small menu listed great produce-focused dishes, the emphasis always on fresh, clean, interesting flavours.

Back in Sydney to open Moog earlier this year, Savage again came under the wing of mentor Mark Best. The menu at Moog is playful and full of whimsy. Lamb is braised then packed into a vine leaf dolmade; parsley dots red mullet, which has the snap and crackle of roasted almonds for textural interest. Savage's jerusalem artichoke custard is a sensual wonder, and his seared black sausage with calamari and squid ink vinaigrette a revelation in black, red and white.

If you're full (which isn't likely; the portions, like the prices, are modest), dessert may take the form of hazelnut biscuits, delivered in a cute paper bag with "Cookies" written on the front. Or it could be that plate holding four orange blossom marshmallows, toasted and to be eaten with sticky fingers, bringing back all the glee of childhood.